Japanese Food in Orchard Road - Gion Dining

Gion Dining, a japanese restuarant in Orchard Road, located on the second level of Royal Plaza on Scotts astounded my tastebuds. I was shocked, confused and amazed all at once while eating the humble Chawanmushi, also known as steamed egg. Why, you may wonder...I will reveal that later, but here's how I found them a few days ago - on my facebook timeline when a friend invited me to "like" the page. The page is displayed below, do like it and enjoy their 100 day promotion of a whopping 50% off till 25th June 2015!

Gion Dining

Finding the restaurant was easy, it's at the Royal Plaza on Scotts, and you can either enter through the private life on the side closer to Shaw Center or via the red carpeted opulent stairs at the hotel lobby. Walking up and turning to the left, I found Gion Dining easily but decided to head to the bathroom to quickly freshen up first. The bathroom was beautifully done up, fit for royalty, I thought. It wasn't till later that I found out that there is a princess's suite in the hotel, and the princess would stay at the hotel each time she visits Singapore. I'm keeping mum about the country though. Located at such a beautiful place known for their amazing Halal buffet restaurant, I wondered if Gion Dining is Halal certified too. 

After speaking to the owner, I was surprised to learn that Gion Dining was the top favourite of stars and politicians in Beijing since 1996, and it was THE place to go if you wanted to entertain your guests there in China. It was one of the first few Japanese restaurants there too, with founder and Head Chef Mr Mino. She moved to Singapore and started Gion Dining here, renovating and setting up the huge restaurant at the tune of more than a million dollars. (Imagine their alfresco seating area is more than 3000sqft!)

She's the owner of Gion Dining, and she serves and entertains the guests as well. I was really impressed that she would be so hands on!

The private lift to Gion Dining, the lights in the glass lift would change colours slowly, I felt like I was in a glass snow globe.

I arrived at 5.30pm and didn't start ordering till nearly an hour later as I was so excited meeting my old friend Louisa who's a consultant at Gion, and she entertained me with stories about the challenges they met while creating a 200 dish menu which is strictly Halal. (They are waiting for their license at the moment.) Making Japanese food Halal is extremely difficult, as they are not allowed to use Sake nor Mirin nor any other ingredients containing alcohol of any kind, besides the usual no pork and no lard policy. I couldn't wait to order and taste their food, and even though their menu is on the ipad, the waitress would usually wait for your order and explain the menu items if they are not running at full house. I've taken some shots of the menu so you can check it out before heading down. However, their menu is also available online at www.giondining.com

So what did I order? I love checking out how good and how authentic a Japanese restaurant is by ordering items that are not easy to prepare / items that look easy but are hard to deliver.

This is one of the delicacies in Japan, and I was wondering how the liver was going to taste since it couldn't be rinsed in sake. The flavour was delicate, with the whole mouth buttery feel of taste and texture. I was amazed by how creamy it was and how utterly not fishy it is. You can tell it is hand rolled from the slight uneven crumbling. The balance of the ponzu and the slight saltiness of the liver was just the thing to kickstart my tastebuds.

Ankimo, Monkfish liver (The Monkfish comes from USA)


THIS IS A MUST TRY!

According to Wikipedia,Ankimo  is a Japanese dish made with monkfish liver.

The liver is first rubbed with salt, then rinsed with sake. Then its veins are picked out and the liver is rolled into a cylinder and steamed. Ankimo is often served with momiji-oroshi (chili-tinted grated daikon), thinly sliced scallions and ponzu sauce.

Ankimo is considered one of the chinmi (delicacies) of Japan. It is listed at number 32 on World's 50 most delicious foods compiled byCNN Go in 2011

Next, I had the Akagai Su, the sashimi ark shell (red clam) in a japanese vinegar dressing with seaweed and thinly sliced Japanese cucumber. The freshness of the Akagai was a sharp contrast to the vinegar and the seaweed served to enhance the flavour of the sea. The thin silvers of the cucumber helped cleanse the palate and I was ready after a mouthful of green tea with roasted brown rice, to start on the small sashimi platter I had ordered.

I had asked for tasting portions, as I wanted to experience the freshness of the sashimi - I read so many reviews of their incredibly fresh sashimi. I especially enjoyed the Kampachi -the flesh was firm and slightly crunchy and it was cut beautifully with no veins of the fish distracting from the lovely texture. The salmon was cut in a strange way though, thick and in a style that I have not previously experiences. Not unpleasant, but I prefer my salmon in larger, thinner slices.

This is another winner! The Gion Lover's Roll - sweet potato encrusted in tempura with startling thin slices of avocado topped with a bud of mayonnaise. According to the owner, a lover's heart is soft and sweet, hence the name. She's really poetic while speaking in Mandarin, and I just wished I had paid more attention in school so I could fully appreciate the nuances of Chinese. This is fabulous of vegetarians!

Don't you think the tear dropped shaped rolls are so beautiful, arranged on a Japanese long plate? Reminds me of the Hana (flower). The ever popular vegetarian maki set,  made of long dried gourd strips marinated in a sweet sauce wrapped in rice and seaweed, (Kampyo Maki), matched with cucumber maki (Kappa Maki) and Takuwan Maki (Picked Japanese radish wrapped in rice and seaweed) were lovely one bite rolls that taste good on their own without soy sauce and wasabi.

I was a little overwhelmed by all the items on the roll menu, so I took the easy way out and ordered the assorted rolls. My favourite has to be the salmon and tuna roll that is paired with a tad of avocado and balanced with the slightly salty flying fish roe.

Another very pleasing sushi - the soft shelled crab sushi coated in a light batter and deep fried. What surprised me was that the soft shell crab was still crisp and yet moist on the inside. I enjoyed this rather immensely and was so tempted to order the full sized version.  

THIS IS ANOTHER MUST TRY!

Tororo (Grated mountain yam) is full of health benefits, and it is known as the medicine from the mountains. Aside from its antioxidant properties, it is very good for the digestive system as it contains an enzyme Amylase. It's also refreshing and tasty, and I love mixing in the wasabi for an extra sweet kick!

The onsen is not just a normal 60 degree egg which is firm on the outside and runny on the inside - it is served in a broth of ginger and light soya sauce mixed with a little bit of sugar, making it a very comforting egg indeed.

I can't resist eggs, so every time I see them on the menu, I have to order them!

This chawanmushi is the smoothest I have ever tasted - imagine a smooth bean curd that is so light and so incredibly creamy that it floats and dances on your tongue. Coupled with the fish roe, this is a joy to consume. YOU HAVE TO TRY THIS!

After having the eggs done in three different ways, I still couldn't decide which I liked best. It's a close fight between the light-melt-in-your-mouth Chawamushi and the lovely runny egg in a light gingerly broth that has so many layers of flavours in the really deceptively simple dish. If you like eggs the way I do, just order both. That's going to be a whole lot easier than deciding on one. After you order both, share them!

Cod and Scallop platter saw the scallop fried with an egg coating that helped keep the scallop moist and sweet. The grilled cod was a little dry that day when I tried it, so I suspect when I asked for smaller portions, the chef cut it thinner than usual. The potato salad is something I would order on it's own, it's that good!

The Ebi Mayonezu was so tasty I had to stop myself from licking the last bits of mayonnaise off the plate. Prawns were exceedingly fresh and the heads were sweet, the lightly "aburi" of the mayonnaise was awesome - I have no idea how they made it crisp and creamy all at once!

I finally made it to the grilled section, and there are still loads to explore. By now, I have eaten so much over a course of 5 hours of inspiring conversation that I really couldn't take another bite. I really surprised myself when the first mouthful led to yet another, as they were just too delicious! The scallop and cod ensemble is a fabulous duo paired with potato salad, and the juicy grilled prawns butterflied in their mayonnaise blanket that was lightly torched were just the stuff food dreams are made of.

Throughout the course of conversation, I found out that the 80 year old Japanese chef who is one of the founders of Gion Dining came to Singapore where he stayed for a few months to create a whole new genre of authentic and fusion Japanese food - Halal Japanese dining using ingredients that are able to replicate the taste of using alcohol in Japanese cooking. Initially thought to be easy - (they first thought that all they needed was just needed to eliminate the pork dishes) the endeavour to obtain a Halal certificate was a whole lot more difficult. From not being able to soak the liver in sake, to not using sake nor mirin in staples like sushi rice and Chawanmushi, I would say that they have managed to successfully recreate and innovate a new genre - Halal Japanese Food. Muslim and non-Muslim friends out there now have the option to eat in a lovely, exclusive Japanese Restaurant and entertain their friends and clients in a charming, quiet environment.

Gion Dining
Add: 25 Scotts Rd, #02-01
Royal Plaza on Scotts,
Singapore 228220
Tel: 6735 6100
Mon: 17:30–21:00
Tues - Sun: 11:30–14:00
                        17:30–21:00


Please note that their head chef and some serving staff are off on Mondays, so if you would like to have the full experience of dining at Gion Dining, do make a reservation any other day. 

They are available for private dining requests in their VIP Tatami Rooms that have hosted Royalty and VVIPs from all over the world, and do let them know your budget for each person so they can create a customized menu.